Dreaded Holidays
by tinyhobbit
Summary: Rachel thought that this years Valentine's Day would be just as horrible as every other year - couples flaunting their happy relationships while she was all alone. But maybe this year could finally be different? AU, Puckleberry, one-shot!


_I can honestly, truly say that I do not own Glee, nor am I making any money from this fic._

_This is just a nice, fluffy little fanfic which finally gives Rachel the Valentine's day she deserves. I wrote this mostly because it is, in fact, Valentine's day tomorrow, so it's just a nice little one-shot for that. Slightly AU, set in Season 3, though does not follow all of Season 3's plotline. Finn and Rachel broke up at some point during the year, so that plotline has disappeared. Puckleberry, of course. _

_Written quite quickly, so if it's terrible I'm sorry._

_I hope you enjoy!_

Dreaded Holidays

Opening my eyes that morning, I knew that it was going to be a rubbish day. I didn't quite work out why straight away however, until I had rolled out of bed and was already half way through my morning work out on the elliptical. It was when the "_Wicked" _calendar on the wall caught my eye that I suddenly realised what day it was. The fourteenth of February.

_Valentine's Day._

Or, as I liked to call it, "International let's make all single people feel bad as all the people in relationships shove it in our faces." Also known as, ILMASPFBAATPIRSIIOF. I could understand why most people used the normal term for it, however. ILMASPFBAATPIRSIIOF was a bit of a mouthful.

But I wasn't really joking when I say that I hated Valentine's. On this day every single year, I would hopefully wait for some kind of gift or card, wishing that somebody would send me something. My dads always gave me a card and some chocolate, but it really wasn't the same as getting something from a "secret admirer". I had _never_ gotten anything from anyone other than my parents. Sure, I'd had boyfriends, but never over Valentine's Day. I'd never had that special date, that special boy who cared about me enough to make an effort on the one day of the year that everyone's life suddenly revolved around the opposite sex. And it sucked.

Before High School, it didn't really matter to me. Sure, I was disappointed when I didn't get anything, but it didn't really mean much, because only the most popular girls in the class got a present – girls like Quinn and Santana.

Well, not much had changed in that respect, I guess.

However, things really changed when I got to McKinley. Suddenly, boys were interested in girls. Cards, chocolate and teddies were somehow appearing in lockers of the prettiest girls all over school, and at the time, I was really hoping for something. I mean, who wasn't? The rational part of my brain told me not to get my hopes up, but somehow, I still managed to. Instead of some flowers and a card...I got a slushy in the face from Azimio. I suppose that was a bit of a gift?

This always happened, and suddenly this one day of the year became so much harder because of how girls like Quinn flaunted their relationships in our faces. And this year, once again, I had nobody.

Surprisingly, I wasn't too upset over my break up with Finn. I was sick of that boy always screwing me over, and surprise, surprise! He was back with Quinn again, for yet another year. Why did I always come second to her? Why did nobody pay attention to me? Was it too much to ask for somebody to love me without having loved Quinn before, and after, myself? Apparently so.

Dragging myself into the school, I met Kurt at my locker, who was squealing over the gift that Blaine had given him. I smiled, honestly happy for Kurt, but I couldn't help but feel a little jealous. Even _Kurt_ had someone on this horrible day. How was that fair?

I mentally told myself off for having that thought. Kurt deserved someone. He had gone through so much, what with Karofsky and his dad, it was finally his shot to experience love with another. And I was especially glad that it was with Blaine, rather than some douchebag that would break his heart.

I just wished that I had someone, and it hurt seeing so many people who did.

Even Mercedes had a boyfriend...

_Star star star_

I skipped lunch that day, opting to go to the Auditorium instead, but someone was already in there practising. Cursing my bad luck, I didn't even pay attention to who it was, and I trudged to the Choir Room. When I got there, I saw Mr Schue bending over some sheet music on top of the piano, and went to turn away before he saw me, but I was too late.

"Rachel?" he asked, looking up.

"Sorry, Mr Schue, I didn't realise anyone would be in here." I said, making to leave.

"Oh, it's fine," he said quickly. "What were you...?" He trailed off, leaving the question hanging.

"I was just going to do some practising, someone was already in the auditorium. But it's fine, I'll just leave."

His face visibly lit up, and I was momentarily confused at his obvious excitement. "Oh, are you performing something in Glee today!" he exclaimed. "That's great, Rachel! I can't wait to hear what you've got!" Before I could speak, he was gathering up his music, and rushing out the room. "I'll leave you to practise then. I'm sure Brad's around somewhere if you need him!"

Great. So now I had to perform in front of the whole club, proclaiming my sadness for being alone and single on today of all days. I could just imagine all of their faces. Tina would look sympathetic, as usual, her hand clutching Mike's. Brittany would probably look clueless, and Santana would just look bored. Quinn would be practically lying on Finn, with that smug look on her face. Kurt and Blaine would most likely film it on their phones. They liked to do that these days.

But...maybe Noah would be nice to me. I had sort of had a bit of a crush on him for a while, but didn't really have the guts to go back down that road again. Besides, I was convinced that after all this time, he still loved Quinn.

Why did she always steal everything I loved away from me?

I decided to change the song that I would be singing, so that I didn't seem quite so pathetic, but it still managed to access my feelings. Once I was satisfied that I would give off an amazing performance that was up to my standards, I left for my next class.

I found myself growing more and more anxious as the day wore on. It was odd, I wasn't normally nervous for any sort of performance, but this week's lesson had been about love...unpredictable, I know. Got to hand it to Schue, he really knows how to choose them. However, I don't think it was just the singing, it may have also been the fact that I had to deal with all the couples in the club proclaiming their love for each other while I sat alone. As usual.

It was as I was walking to Glee that the slushy hit me in the face. Groaning in annoyance, I grabbed some spare clothes from my locker, and ran to the bathroom to change as fast as I could. I only had leggings and a long top, but I would have to make it work, seeing as there was no other thing I could do. Slamming the cubicle door behind me in annoyance, I went to check my reflection, and saw that all my make-up had run off, and I wasn't really looking as good as I'd have liked. Chances were I was not going to pull off the "single, independent and proud" look that I had been going for. Could this day get any worse?

Luckily for me, I had managed to miss not only Mike and Tina's lovey-dovey performance but Finn and Quinn's as well. Inwardly I smiled to myself as I ran into the room just as the rhyming picture perfect couple sat down.

"Sorry, I'm late," I said as I ran to a seat beside Kurt.

"What happened?" Mr Schue asked, his eyebrows raised as he took in my appearance.

"Annual Valentine's slushy," I said nonchalantly, "Sorry,"

"Oh, not at all." He said, viewing me concernedly, as Kurt patted my shoulder in a comforting manner. He knew how much I hated this holiday. "Well, I know for a _fact_ that you have something planned for today." He smiled broadly, thinking that this was some sort of treat for me, and I think he thought that he was cheering me up.

I laughed awkwardly, and shook my head slightly at Blaine's whispered "Do you?" Nonetheless, I was never one to pass up a performance, so I wandered down to the front of the choir room and whispered the song in the ear of a band member.

I didn't bother with any pre-talk, which surprised some members, I think. Closing my eyes, I started to sing.

_Maybe I'm a dreamer  
>Maybe I'm misunderstood<br>Maybe you're not seeing the side of me you should  
>Maybe I'm crazy<br>Maybe I'm the only one  
>Maybe I'm just out of touch<br>Maybe I've just had enough_

Opening my eyes, I faced the room of the people who were meant to be my family, and belted out the chorus._  
>Maybe it's time to change<br>And leave it all behind  
>I've never been one to walk alone<br>I've always been scared to try  
>So why does it feel so wrong<br>To reach for something more  
>To wanna live a better life<br>What am I waiting for?  
>'Cause nothing stays the same<br>Maybe it's time to change_

_Maybe it's hopeless  
>Maybe I should just give up<br>What if I can't trust myself?  
>What if I just need some help? <em> I tried to subtly glance at Noah when I said this line, and saw that he was staring at me, smiling encouragingly. I then discovered that I couldn't look away, and our eyes were glued together. __

_Maybe it's time to change  
>And leave it all behind<br>I've never been one to walk alone  
>I've always been scared to try<br>So why does it feel so wrong  
>To reach for something more<br>To wanna live a better life  
>What am I waiting for?<br>'Cause nothing stays the same  
>Maybe it's time to change<em>

_And maybe it's time to change  
>And leave it all behind<br>I've never been one to walk alone  
>I've always been scared to try<em>

_And maybe it's time to change  
>And leave it all behind<br>I've never been one to walk alone  
>I've always been scared to try<br>So why does it feel so wrong  
>To reach for something more<br>To wanna live a better life  
>What am I waiting for?<br>'Cause nothing stays the same  
>Maybe it's time to change<br>'Cause nothing stays the same  
>Maybe it's time to change<em>

Sometime during the last chorus, my eyes had closed. I opened them now, smiling brightly as I heard a huge applause. "Excellent job, Rachel!" exclaimed Mr Schue, getting to his feet and clapping his hands. "Really well done."

"I'm sorry," said Quinn from her spot beside, sorry, on top of, Finn, and I rolled my eyes, preparing myself for whatever insult it was that was coming. "But how in anyway was that about love?"

I sighed, and looked at her, "Quinn, I'm sorry, but that song was kinda obvious. And if you couldn't understand how that was about love, then I feel kind of sorry for you. Love isn't just about...about flowers, and chocolates and mushy crap that makes pretty girls feel happy and every other girl feel like they're not valued. Love is about changing for your partner, about _wanting_ them to be happy, but also thinking about yourself." I saw some of the couples in the room exchanging smiling glances, and I had to hold back from rolling my eyes.

Mr Schue grinned, "Excellent, Rachel, exactly! This is exactly what I wanted for this assignment! Who's next?"

I smiled happily, sitting back down next to Kurt, who hugged me proudly, exclaiming how I had done so well. Just as I was settling back to hear Mercedes sing some song to either Sam or her boyfriend, I again caught Noah's eye. He smiled and gave me a thumbs up and my heart suddenly felt lighter.

_Star star star_

That night I was just settling down to watch a film when my doorbell rang. I didn't know who it would be, seeing as my dad's were out on a Valentine's date and everyone else that might come round unexpected was already out on a date. I padded over to the door and opened it to reveal a nervous looking Noah holding a bouquet of flowers.

"Noah?" I breathed out and he smiled, holding out the flowers to me.

"I have something I need to say," he said, "Don't interrupt me before I say it,"

I nodded my head, confused. He took a deep breath.

"I know that I haven't always been that great to you," he said before I could say anything else. "But I realised, today, that all those times I picked on you, and threw slushies at you...it was because I was jealous. Jealous that you could dream so big, that your talent was bigger than this small cow-town that we live in. When I joined glee club...we dated and I was too hung over on this girl that I didn't even love...I just loved the baby that was inside of her. But what you said today – about change and love and stuff...it rang a bell."

He ran a hand through his mohawk and let out a frustrated sigh, "I'm making a mess of this." He took another breath and then said, "WhatI'm trying to say is...when I'm with you, I want to change for you. I want you to be happy, and I love to see you smile. I love your crazy little laugh, and whenever I do something that makes you laugh it fills me with this pansy girly feeling that a badass like me should _not_ be experiencing...but I don't mind. I'd do anything for you, Rach...Heck, I'd even shave off my mohawk for you."

I giggled, but appreciated the gravity of the example. That mohawk was what created the fear between him and the geeks of the school.

"So I'm here...to formally ask you – Rachel Berry, would you like to go on a date with me?"

Elation filled my body, and I smiled widely, and did the only thing that felt right – I leaned forward and kissed him. He seemed surprised, but he soon responded, and he picked me up off my feet, twirling me around, the flowers dropped on the ground on my front porch.

"Was that a yes?" he asked, smiling, when we parted.

I laughed, "Of course it was!" I then picked up the flowers, "I need to put these in water! They're beautiful, Noah,"

"Get your coat," he said, grabbing my hand in his, "Cause I'm taking my girl out on Valentine's."

As we left my house, he said to me, "Oh, and that speech is never to be repeated to anyone. Got it?"

I laughed loudly, feeling happy and free. I finally got the guy, the perfect fourteenth of February. Who knows, maybe Valentine's day wasn't so bad after all – I couldn't wait for next year.

_I really hope you liked that! Please review and let me know what you thought!_


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